Heckling Babies

During my research for the Sasha and Storm post, I came across an article about Storm and something written in it jumped out at me:

Rolling out of the “media hoopla” that followed the Star story - people would yell “boy” or “girl” at Storm on the street.

Storm’s parents, Kathy and David, decided not to assign a gender to Storm, and people who disagreed with this decision would yell “boy” or “girl” at Storm in an effort to express their disagreement (just plain rude). This particular scenario hadn’t crossed my mind when I envisioned a day out and about in the city with Zoomer.

In my ideal world - Brent, Zoomer, and I could wake up on a Saturday, and walk to our local coffee shop – a latte for Brent, a dirty chai for me, and a babyccino for Z – we’d then stroll around our neighborhood enjoying the sunshine. No one shouts “girl!” at us while we pick flowers.

We go to the farmer’s market at the park downtown to pick up some produce and browse the local artists’ booths. Z gets their face painted and waves to vendors while being pulled in a wagon bursting with sunflowers, pastries and local peaches. No one shouts “boy!” at us when Z roars like a lion.

Everyone has different beliefs and values and lifestyles that influence their parenting decisions. For example, some people strongly believe in raising their children to be vegan, or religious, or feminist - or a vegan, religious, feminist or [insert one of a thousand other parenting practices here].

I hope no one yells insulting or intimidating words at parents who are simply doing what they believe is best for their children. We don’t all have to agree on the best childrearing practices – but I think we can agree that if you can’t say something nice to A CHILD, you should just be quiet.

A common question Brent & I get asked is, “How do you respond to random people who ask you about or assume Zoomer’s gender?” Here is a breakdown of what typically happens in our day-to-day interactions with strangers...

A common question Brent & I get asked is, “How do you respond to random people who ask you about or assume Zoomer’s gender?” Here is a breakdown of what typically happens in our day-to-day interactions with strangers...

Let me put a disclaimer here: First, I want to acknowledge that the US healthcare system has a long way to go in regards to there being an understanding of the complexities of biological sex and gender identity. Second, my...

When Z was just a wee gestating bean in my belly at 26 weeks, someone asked Brent the usual question, “What are you having?” Brent told them that we were going to wait and be surprised. The person asked, “How do you even prepare for that?...

During my research for the Sasha and Storm post, I came across an article about Storm and something written in it jumped out at me: Rolling out of the “media hoopla” that followed the Star story - people would yell “boy” or “girl” at Storm...

“Do you want a boy or a girl?” I heard one of our friends ask my husband, Brent, after finding out we were 5 weeks pregnant. Ten feet away, in my feigned ignorance, I continued looking away from them but was listening harder than I've ever...

Naming a child is a big responsibility. Some people go through elaborate processes to decide on the perfect name, or read through hundreds of names in books and on website lists – some friends of ours did a March Madness-style bracket...

When referring to a child’s genitals, it is common to call them “privates.” We are taking this practice beyond the traditional level. We, as parents, have decided not to reveal Z’s sex to anyone outside of their immediate caretaking circle...